


The Language of Flowers

by thx4thevenombby



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M, Pool Boy AU, background nanabuki, beach au, filthy rich komaeda, gardener!komaeda, gay island extravaganza, mentions of blowjobs, mentions of piercings, no nsfw yet but there will be, swimmer!hajime
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2020-07-13
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:00:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25232791
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thx4thevenombby/pseuds/thx4thevenombby
Summary: Nagito handed Hajime the carnation and he took it, twirling the stem between his fingers to see the sides of it. “They represent a divine love. Complete fascination…” Nagito’s eyes were glazed over. “But you see how the flowers may all look similar, when you pay attention, one of them stands out, even if you don’t know why.”
Relationships: Hinata Hajime/Komaeda Nagito
Comments: 17
Kudos: 96





	The Language of Flowers

**Author's Note:**

> dedicated to zeke nicole and nic for being the best <3

Hajime’s favorite bugs to pick out of the water were dragonflies. Even though the pool net usually crumpled their long forms into something much less recognizable, their wings almost always managed to glitter. They made for a welcome distraction from the various types of leaves Hajime also found in his net. He squirted some more tile soap on the surface of the pool for good measure and scrubbed the sides, doing his best to zone out and get his mind off the phone in his pocket. 

His boss, Kaito, had sent him a text that morning, telling him to stop by and see him after he finished work. He said he had, “something important” to ask him about. The thought filled Hajime with dread. While his pool boy job didn’t pay much, it was desperately needed. He’d only moved into town two months earlier and his last job, at the game store his housemate worked at, had gone south fast. Hajime didn’t have the time or expendable money to be shopping around for another job and he was just hoping that whatever was so important for Kaito to ask him about, didn’t involve lowering his pay or firing him. He was going over his last few days in his head, trying to figure out if he’d done anything worth a customer complaining over, but he couldn’t think of anything. 

The pool didn’t need to be vacuumed, but it did need some more chlorine, so he poured it in, peeled off his gloves, and set everything back in its place. Hajime climbed into Kaito’s truck -white, with a huge logo for the company on the side- and made his way back to the small building where Kaito kept his supplies and paperwork, aka his “office.” 

“Hajime! Just the man I wanted to see!” Kaito smiled a large, warm smile when he saw Hajime and stood up to greet him.  _ That’s a good sign that he’s being so friendly, right? _

“Hey, Kaito. What’s up?” He took a seat opposite Kaito.

“Well, you’ve been with us for a little less than a month now, and-” Kaito sat back down in his seat.  _ And? _ “You’re doing great!” He smiled again and Hajime almost let out an audible sigh of relief. “Which is… why I have to do something difficult right now.”  _ Shit.  _

“Er, what’s that?” Hajime raised an eyebrow. 

“You know Hope’s Peak?” 

“The gated community Souda works in?”

“Yes! Exactly.” Kaito nodded. Hope’s Peak was a small, gated community near where Hajime had been working. It was one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in the area, full of mansions and unbelievably large pools and spas. Souda, one of Hajime’s coworkers, was there often, fixing up pool pumps and motors. Hajime had only been inside it once, while sharing the truck with Souda. The sheer size of the houses had almost disgusted him. “There is a specific, uh, customer in Hope’s Peak who we need someone working on. He’s willing to pay 1.5x your normal pay and-”

“Wouldn’t one of the other guys have wanted him first?” Hajime frowned in confusion. Kaito coughed uncomfortably. “Is his pool really weird or something?”

“He’s… It’s… The owner of the house is  _ eccentric _ . That’s how Maki describes him, anyway.” Kaito shrugged. Maki was Kaito’s fiancee, who was in school getting her nursing degree. Hajime knew most of Kaito’s money went into her tuition. “Rantaro was working on his house before he quit and I haven’t gotten around to finding a replacement for him, but… you’ve had nothing but glowing reviews, Hajime. You’re a hard worker. I’m sure you’d do fine.”

“For 1.5x the pay? Really?” Hajime frowned. 

“I swear.”

“And his pool?”

“Plain rectangular thirty by fifty pool. Sixty thousand gallons and a small spa. It’s not too bad to handle. The owner’s also willing to pay for a lawn service if-”

“Yeah, I’ll do it.” Hajime nodded. He was wary of the offer. He knew Kaito was acting weird and he knew this was probably too good to be true, but the money… Hajime knew he needed it. He nodded quickly. “I can start tomorrow if you want.”

“You’re a life-saver, Hajime.” Kaito was happy. “I’ll give you Rantaro’s number and he can fill you in. He can let you into Hope’s Peak tomorrow, too.” 

* * *

Chiaki and Ibuki had just finished cooking dinner when Hajime got home. “That smells great.” He kicked off his shoes by the door and fell into his seat at the table. 

“Thanks, Ibuki cooked most of it.” Chiaki was typing on a laptop. “I’ve got a stats project due tomorrow.” She gestured to the computer and Hajime didn’t miss the dark circles under her eyes. 

“Stats is a bitch!” Ibuki sang happily.

“You’ve taken stats?” Hajime raised an eyebrow.

“Chiaki was saying that all night.” Ibuki shook her head, face still bright. 

“Thanks for dinner.” Hajime nodded to her when she set his plate down. “I can take dishes duty if you’ve got a ton of work, Chiaki.”

“Thanks, Hajime.” She just barely smiled. Chiaki was in her final year of her compsci degree. Her roommate had transferred to another school at the last minute, so Chiaki had settled for an apartment with Hajime and her girlfriend Ibuki, near campus. Ibuki was a musician and between her gigs and Hajime’s pool salary, they were able to pay for enough of the apartment to keep everything running. Hajime was grateful to Chiaki for the place to live, but he felt like a third wheel. When Chiaki started her paid internship in a few weeks, he knew her and Ibuki wouldn’t need his cut of the rent anymore, either. They both reminded him constantly that they liked having Hajime around, but he still felt guilty. 

After dinner, Hajime did the dishes and went back to his room. He could hear Ibuki playing her keyboard as quietly as possible (which was still very loud) and Chiaki’s keyboard tapping. Hajime pulled out his phone and called Rantaro. Rantaro answered on the third ring with a deep  _ hello _ after a long pause. “Hey, Rantaro. It’s Hajime, from work.”

“Hajime, how are you?”

“I’m good. I’m, uh, calling ‘cause I’m taking over the house you were doing in Hope’s Peak-”

“The Komaeda house?” Rantaro asked.

“I don’t know. Kaito just said you used to do the lawn work there before you quit.” 

“Yeah, Nagito’s house. I’m surprised he put a new kid like you on it. That’s kinda funny. Would Souda not take it?”

“Er, I don’t think so. Why? Is there something wrong with it?” Hajime was feeling increasingly nervous about this house. 

“No, not at all. Kaito and Souda are just like that, y’know? The owner’s nice enough and the work’s not too bad ‘cause he does all the gardening so he won’t let you mess with half the yard. All I ever did was service the pool, mow the lawn, and then maybe pick up some twigs or whatever and leave.”

“Really? That’s all he wants and he still pays extra?”

“Rich people are weird.” Rantaro’s shrug was audible. “I work the gate at Hope’s Peak, you should stop by after work tomorrow. You and Chiaki can come down to the beach with me, it’ll be fun.” For a few years before Hajime had known him, Rantaro had worked two jobs. One at Kaito’s lawn and pool business, the other at the GameStop Chiaki worked at. He’d been the one to recommend the pool boy job to Hajime, when he’d quit it to man the gate into Hope’s Peak. Somehow, the pay for sitting in a tiny room all day was more than what he’d been getting mowing lawns for hours for Kaito. With how much Rantaro spent on weed, he needed the extra cash. 

“Okay, cool. See you tomorrow, then.”

* * *

The next morning, Hajime got dressed quickly and drove to Kaito’s to pick up the truck. Rantaro let him in the gate with a wave and a smile and Hajime did his best not to look uneasy. He unloaded what he needed from the truck and walked up the long driveway. The house was large and it seemed older than many of the others in the neighborhood. An expansive garden stretched across the lawn, perfectly maintained with just about every flower Hajime thought could even grow in their climate. He knocked on the door and a few moments later, it opened, cold air rushing out from it.

“Um, hi.” Hajime blinked. A man who couldn’t be any older than him answered the door. He had wild white hair and pale eyes that looked startled. Hajime figured it was his parents’ house, but he didn’t want to seem rude by asking for them, so he just went along with the spiel, anyway.

“Hello.” The man fiddled with his cardigan sleeve.  _ He’s wearing a cardigan when it’s eighty-three degrees out? I guess the house feels pretty cold so I dunno.  _

“I’m, uh, taking over for Rantaro. He filled me in, but I wanted to make sure there wasn’t anything specific you needed before I started working.” Hajime was acutely aware of the man’s gaze, but he wasn’t sure why. Other than being a little startled (for seemingly no reason), the man in front of him wasn’t staring or behaving in any weird way. It was just something about him that made Hajime feel like he was gazing  _ into _ him. The man shook his head. “Cool. Has anyone been here in a week or less?” Hajime asked. 

“No.” He shook his head. “What’s your name?”

“Hajime.” Hajime frowned. People didn’t usually ask his name, when he was just going to be cleaning the pool for the day.  _ I guess I’ll probably be working here awhile if Kaito and Souda won’t do it _ . “And your name?”

“Nagito Komaeda.”

“You’re the owner of the house?” Hajime blinked in surprise.  _ There’s no way. He’s definitely my age, and there’s no way a twenty-two year old could buy themselves a house like this unless they were some celebrity or something and I’ve never heard of this guy.  _

“It was my parents’, before they passed. I inherited it.” Nagito explained at Hajime’s clear surprise. Hajime flushed, feeling guilty for letting his shock show so much. 

“Sorry. Um, it’s a beautiful place. I like the garden.” He gestured numbly to a random part of the garden. 

“Thank you very much, Hajime.” Nagito smiled happily. “Please let me know if there’s anything you need.” He offered. Hajime thanked him, but declined and went back to the truck, hauling his equipment to the pool. 

He took out the water testing kit and sat down by the pool, comparing each measurement to the recommended amount. Everything looked in order. Hajime checked off “water chemistry” on his clipboard. He pulled out the pump basket and cleaned it, checking that off his list, too. By the time Hajime was skimming the pool with his net, the sun overhead was starting to reach its peak.  _ Great. Just in time for me to mow the lawn. I should get here earlier or later from now on.  _ He thought to himself, starting the lawn mower. He made sure to keep a good distance from the flower beds, to avoid accidentally cutting any of the pops of color that dug their way out of the dirt around them. Hajime finished up and packed the truck back up. He drove it back to Kaito’s to swap ti for his own car and picked up Chiaki and Rantaro.

Rantaro’s parents lived near a small beach, where Rantaro would often invite friends. It was growing dark outside and the sound of the waves calmed Hajime down. “How was Nagito?” Rantaro asked, tapping his cigarette on the side of the car.

“I didn’t expect him to be so young. He wasn’t bad. Kaito had me scared, but he just seemed like a kinda weird guy, honestly.” Hajime parked the car. Rantaro nodded, his face neutral. 

“I think he’s just lonely. I can’t imagine being stuck alone in that house. He’s got no friends and his family’s all dead. He’s probably just crazy ‘cause he’s alone so much.” Rantaro sighed sadly. 

“He’s crazy?” Hajime frowned. 

“People say it, yeah. He’s just… good at getting on people’s nerves. I never had an issue with him, but Sonia told me he’s got a bit of a mean streak sometimes.” Rantaro was friends with many of the people their age who lived in Hope’s Peak. He’d grown up going to high school with them and despite his carefree attitude and many jobs, Rantaro’s parents were surprisingly wealthy. Sonia was someone he’d mentioned a few times. “How’s uni going?” He passed Chiaki his cigarette. 

“Can’t wait to be done.” Chiaki laughed. “My mom used to always ask me if I ever got tired of computers when I was a kid, when she was mad at me for playing games instead of homework or chores. I think I finally have.”

“Hey, at least you made it through four years.” Hajime reminded her. Chiaki frowned, giving him one of her worried looks that he hated. 

“I only did because I had you and Ibuki and my parents.” She said pointedly, but Hajime knew he’d still miss the point. 

“Did I tell you guys I fell off my roof yesterday?” Rantaro could sense the tension in the air. “Hurt almost as bad as getting my dick pierced-”

“Do you  _ always _ have to bring conversations back to your dick piercings?” Hajime groaned. 

“Yeah.” Rantaro shrugged. Chiaki smiled over her switch from where she’d sat down on her towel. Rantaro put his own towel down next to her and laid on it, stretching out like a cat. Hajime put down his towel, but didn’t lay down on it. Instead, he slipped off his sandals and waded a few inches into the water. The pieces of shell in the sand stung his foot, but he ignored them. The cool water was refreshing, even if the afternoon sun had already settled into a much breezier night. 

Hajime stared down the coast, towards the direction of Hope’s Peak. The sky was darkening quickly, clouds settling over the water. “Shit, Rantaro- there’s a storm coming.” Hajime called back to his friends.  _ And we  _ just _ got here. Damnit.  _

“It’ll pass.” Rantaro shook his head. Hajime wasn’t sure how Rantaro knew, but he was right. They spent the rest of the night at the beach, talking, laughing, passing around some of Rantaro’s weed. The storm clouds never left, but like Rantaro had said, a real storm never materialized.  _ Guess we got lucky.  _

* * *

Hajime woke up extra early the next morning, to avoid the heat, and drove to Nagito’s house. Sometime during the night, the storm finally had showed up. The grass was wet and the dirt was much softer than it had been the day before. Hajime walked into the backyard and got to work. He was double checking the filter when he noticed he wasn’t alone. 

Nagito was asleep on one of the pool benches, sleeping so deeply that it almost seemed like he wasn’t moving. He was on his back, with a book on his chest, still open as if he’d just dropped it. Even though it was still the morning, the sun was beating down on his pale skin.  _ He’s so pale. It’s like he never goes outside.  _ Hajime shielded his eyes and stared up.  _ He’ll burn.  _ Hajime hesitated for a moment, but he still stepped towards Nagito’s sleeping form and twisted the knob on a nearby pool lounger, until its umbrella’s shade covered Nagito, too. He looked down at the book Nagito was reading: Foucault’s  _ Discipline and Punish _ . Hajime sighed and got back to work.

He’d tested the water the day before, so he didn’t need to do that. Between the rain and him mowing yesterday, there was no need to do much to the lawn, besides clear some random sticks and debris the rain had brought in. Hajime skimmed the pool twice and set down the net, eyes darting back to Nagito. He was still soundly asleep, the light breeze in the air moving his wild hair just slightly.  _ Should I wake him up before I leave? Or would it be more polite to just let him keep sleeping? _ Hajime hesitated.  _ He’s gotta be crazy tired to be asleep out here like this. I wonder what he does for a living? Probably a student.  _ Hajime sighed and instinctually started towards the hose that was wrapped in a tight coil next to the house. Rantaro had told him that he’d never been asked to water the flowers, but Hajime felt a strange urge to water them, anyway.  _ Maybe I just want a tip or something.  _

It took nearly an hour to water all the flowers. Hajime was too nervous about damaging them to use any of the harsher hose settings, since it seemed like they were important to Nagito. He was just finishing up some delicate white flowers, when he heard a sound behind him and turned around quickly, almost spraying Nagito with the hose in his hand. “A-ah! Nagito, sorry, you startled me. I thought you were asleep.” Hajime turned off the water. 

“I apologize, I didn’t mean to scare you.” Nagito tilted his head at the flowers Hajime was watering. “I’m very sorry for appearing so unsightly. I fell asleep last night by the pool. I had meant to wake up before you arrived; I didn’t mean to get in your way.”

“You didn’t.” Hajime shook his head. “I know you said I didn’t have to water these, I just thought you wouldn’t want to if you were tired. I hope that’s all good.” Hajime gestured to the flowers. Nagito nodded quickly. 

“It was a great help, thank you, Hajime.”

“Uh, no problem.” He shrugged. 

“Do you like flowers, Hajime?” Nagito knelt down by the white flowers and touched one of them, lightly. He looked up at Hajime expectantly. Hajime felt nervous, but he wasn’t sure why.

“They’re… they’re cool. Pretty. Smell nice. Those are, um, all pros.” Hajime scratched the back of his head, unsure of what Nagito was trying to get from him. “You’re pretty into them, I’m guessing?” Hajime looked around at the expansive rows of flowers around the two men. Nagito nodded vigorously, some color appearing in his pale cheeks. 

“They’re a great passion of mine. I spend most of my time taking care of them. Are you familiar with flower language?” Nagito waited for Hajime to shake his head before he continued. “I just planted these, they’re gloxinias -summer flowers. Here, look.” Nagito turned the flower towards Hajime and in the inner part of it, he could see a pop of bright pink, that stood out against the white of the rest of it. “They represent love at first sight.” Nagito smiled wistfully. “Beautiful, isn’t it?”

“Yeah.” Hajime nodded slowly. “It must be a ton of work to take care of all of these.”

“It’s not terrible.” Nagito thought for a moment. “I have nothing else to do, so it gives me something to pass the time with, at least.”

“You’re not a student?” Hajime was surprised. 

“I graduated a year early.” Nagito stood up, letting go of the flower. Hajime hoped Nagito wouldn’t ask him, and thankfully, he didn’t. After a brief pause, Hajime started rolling the hose back up and returned it to its place near the house. 

“See you.” He said a quick goodbye to Nagito and finished packing his things. As he was loading up the truck, Souda stopped next to him in his own truck. 

“Hajime!”

“Hey, Souda.” He waved. “Fixing a filter or something?”

“Yeah. Someone sucked like a whole beaver or something into their pool. Kinda fucked up.” He made a face at the memory. “I can’t believe you’re seriously taking over for Rantaro.” Souda cast a similar look at Nagito’s house. 

“Why? He quit.” Hajime frowned. 

“No, not him -  _ the house _ . Y’know, Nagito’s supposed to be cursed? Bet Kaito didn’t tell ya’ that when he offered you the job.” Souda was talking quietly. 

“Cursed?” Hajime frowned. “You believe in that kinda stuff?” He raised an eyebrow at Souda, who groaned. “Why do they say he’s cursed? He seems fine.”

“I forget you’re not from around here.” Souda laughed. “We’re both headed to Kaito’s, I’ll tell you there.” He rolled his window back up and continued down the road. Hajime sighed in annoyance and started his own truck, following Souda back to Kaito’s office. 

When they arrived, Hajime helped Souda unload his equipment, hoping it would make him talk.  _ I knew this offer had to be too good to be true. I don’t think he’s ‘cursed’ or whatever Souda believes, but if he’s got a weird past, that would explain me being the only one here who’s willing to work for him.  _ Hajime was curious.

“Alright, so have you heard about the fire? A few years ago?” 

“Uh, Rantaro mentioned a fire, but I dunno much about it other than that it exists. Wasn’t it like five years ago? Six?”

“Five.” Souda nodded after thinking on it. “So, Kaito’s a few years older than Nagito, but he filled me in. He says Nagito never really went outside, like ever-”

“Like Boo Radley?”

“Huh?” Souda stared blankly. 

“Er, y’know…  _ To Kill a Mockingbird? _ Boo stays in his house all the time, so people are scared of him.”

“Oh, huh. Yeah.” Souda shrugged. “He got pretty beat up about his parents kicking the bucket, so, Sonia, beautiful and kind as ever-” Souda had a thing for one of the Hope’s Peak residents, Sonia Nevermind. She was about to start law school in the fall and Hajime was pretty sure she barely knew Souda’s name, but he was convinced she was going to drop her boyfriend for him. “She threw this party and invited him, so he could come out of his shell or whatever. Like, everyone our age was there. Nagito freaked out halfway through and the whole place randomly caught fire. People got really hurt and Sonia’s whole barn burnt down. Every person in the whole Komaeda family’s had weird things like that, except most of ‘em die from ‘em. Nagito’s the only one left.”

“That doesn’t mean he necessarily did anything-”

“Yeah, yeah. People just say he’s cursed now. He’s freaky, anyway.” Souda was microwaving a frozen burrito as he spoke. “You want one?” He pointed to the burrito. 

“I’m good, thanks though.” Hajime leaned against the counter, thinking.  _ People really think that guy’s cursed? _ Hajime pulled out his phone.  _ I mean, I’ve only known him like two days, but… he just seems like a kinda weird guy, not someone to avoid or anything like that.  _ Hajime sighed, flipping through apps out of boredom. “Hey Maki.” He greeted Maki as she walked through the front door. 

“Is Kaito around?” Maki was never one for pleasantries. 

“Should be in his office.” Hajime glanced to the door. “Is everything alright?” He watched Maki put a hand to her forehead with a frustrated sigh. 

“Yes… I just… I’ll be frank. I had a difficult day, I was going to see if he could get off early for drinks.” Maki explained, playing with her long pigtails. Souda’s eyes brightened up. 

“Drinks? Maki, that’s a great idea! Hajime and I will go-” Souda was speaking so fast that Hajime didn’t even have a chance to send him a warning glance that he hoped would convey  _ hey, I’m pretty sure she wants alone time with her fiance _ . Kaito’s door swung open.

“Drinks?” He smiled excitedly. A half hour later, the four of them were sitting at one of the beach side bars near Rantaro’s house. Hajime mumbled something about seeing Rantaro the day before and Maki’s eyes went dark. 

“I talked to Rantaro, too.” She scowled.  _ I seriously can’t imagine Rantaro pissing someone off… what did he do to make Maki this pissed? _ Hajime was curious. “In addition to the gate job, he’s taken a second position with Ryoma Hoshi and he was telling me about one of his students today.” Ryoma Hoshi was an ex-tennis star who had settled just outside of Hope’s Peak. He ran a tennis club, not because he needed the money, just because he missed the sport. 

“Rantaro plays tennis?” Souda made a  _ wow _ sound. “Cool!”

“Yeah, he’s pretty good at it, too. He was on our high school team back in the day.” Kaito was on his third serving of mini corndogs. Maki took one from him, shaking her head. 

“That’s not the point. He told me one of his students is Kokichi Ouma.” The dark expression on her face never wavered. Kaito groaned and scooted away from his mini corndogs, suddenly uninterested in them. He cursed under his breath. “If he’s paying for lessons, he’ll likely be here the whole summer.” Maki rested her head on her palm, staring vacantly at the rows of colorful rum bottles behind the bar. 

“Who’s Kokichi Ouma?” Hajime asked, taking a sip of the fruity drink he’d ordered. 

“Maki and I went to high school with him. He was probably the biggest dick alive. He went to some ivy and then med school, so we thought we’d gotten rid of him, but he still shows up every few months to treat patients in the area.”

“He’s like Nagito.” Souda had started eating the corndogs Kaito had pushed away. “No one really gets along with him, so he’s always alone. He grew up poor, but he made too many enemies to ever hang out on our side of town, and now that he’s rich, they all still see him as below them. Sucks for him.” Souda was talking with his mouth full. 

“Huh.” Hajime frowned. It surprised him Kaito had any enemies. While Maki had a temper and Souda could get on people’s temper, Kaito was a fairly easy going guy who never seemed too upset with anyone. Hajime even remembered the time he’d accidentally driven a lawnmower into someone’s pool and Kaito hadn’t so much as frowned at him over it.  _ Kokichi must be a massive dick.  _

* * *

The next day, Nagito was planting more flowers when Hajime arrived to clean the pool. Nagito smiled at him as Hajime set down the pool vacuum. He thought about his earlier conversation with Souda and sighed. After he finished with the pool, Hajime walked over to Nagito. “Do you want me to water the flowers again?” He put a hand up to shield his eyes from the sun. Nagito met his gaze and Hajime could see the textured red glow of sunburn across his cheeks.  _ I should’ve put the umbrella over him sooner.  _

“If you wouldn’t mind, that’d be a great help, Hajime.” Nagito nodded, eyes wide. “Since I didn’t ask about it earlier, I’ll increase your pay for it.” He offered as he dug a small hole and placed a tall stem with purple flowers into it. 

“What do those ones mean?” Hajime gestured at the new flowers. Nagito seemed to brighten at the thought that Hajime had remembered their conversation about flower language. 

“They’re monkshood - wolfsbane- they mean to beware.”

“Beware of what?”

“Well they also represent a deadly foe. They’re considered a bad luck symbol by some.” Nagito continued planting more of them, a content look on his face.  _ Isn’t that kind of ominous for a random plant in your garden? _ “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if flowers could change real life like that? You could plant these next to water lilies and you’d never have to worry about your luck again.” Nagito sounded like he desperately wished he could do that. 

“What do you mean?” Hajime tilted his head. “Sorry, I dunno much about flowers.”

“A-ah, no it’s not about the flowers. Water lilies are supposed to bring good fortune. If you were to plant good luck and bad luck next to each other, one could never overpower the other. No vicious cycles… no surprises.” Nagito’s eyes were half lidded. “Sorry, I must have bored you to death. I’ll leave you alone.” Before Hajime could tell him that while he had no idea what Nagito was talking about, it was still interesting, the white haired man had walked quickly into the house behind them. 

* * *

Days went by quickly. With the double increase in pay from Nagito, Hajime didn’t have to work any other lawns or pools, so after he was done with Nagito, he’d have free time nearly every evening. It was a welcome break and it meant considerable more time with Chiaki, Ibuki, and Rantaro. Rantaro swung by their apartment one night, with a crate of expensive champagne and a deck of cards. He refused to tell anyone where he’d managed to get the champagne, and in all honesty, Hajime preferred not to know, in case the police ever asked him about it. 

After two of the bottles had been drunk and what felt like a hundred rounds of Smash had passed, Rantaro got around to asking Hajime about how he was liking the job. “So… now that you’ve been working Nagito’s house for like, two weeks… whaddya think?” 

“It’s been fine, honestly. He mostly just looks after his garden; he doesn’t really talk a lot.” Hajime shrugged. Rantaro’s eyes went wide. 

“He doesn’t talk?”

“I mean, he does a little. Like ‘hello’ and ‘how are you’ and stuff?”

“God, I could never get Nagito to shut up. He’d come out and start talking -usually about philosophy- and just keep going until I was done. At least, I think he was talking about philosophy. I honestly don’t really know.” Rantaro frowned. “Maybe he’s shy around you.” He smirked, a slight tease in his eyes. Hajime snorted. 

“As if.” He settled back on the couch, thinking for a moment. There was something swirling in him, but it took him a second to realize what it was.  _ Why am I  _ hurt _ that Nagito doesn’t talk around me? It’s not like we’re even friends or anything. I’m being weird about this. _

* * *

A few days later, Hajime pulled up to Nagito’s house, lawn mower and pool vacuum in hand. He was kneeling by the pool, checking the pH when he noticed the dark shape at the bottom of the pool.  _ Did an animal fall in? _ Hajime stood up and took a single step before he realized what the dark shape was.  _ Shit shit shit.  _

Hajime threw his phone and wallet out of his pocket and dived into the pool without thinking. Hajime had been a swimmer in high school and he knew he was a good swimmer, but he wasn’t sure how long the body laying at the bottom of the pool had been there. He pulled Nagito’s startlingly still figure over his shoulder and swam back to the surface, gasping for air when he finally reached it. He pushed Nagito over the side of the pool and jumped out, leaning over his mouth to listen for breath. He couldn’t hear anything over his own roaring heartbeat, so he gritted his teeth and got on his knees above Nagito, pressing his hands down on his chest to start CPR, when-

“Augh!” Nagito coughed back to life, torso shooting up and almost knocking Hajime over. He coughed up the water in his lungs, face pained and almost blue. Hajime patted him on the back. 

“You, uh, good?” Hajime moved to kneel in front of him. Nagito nodded, still coughing for a few moments before he was able to get a full sentence out. 

“I’m fine,  _ ah _ -” A few more coughs rang out. “I apologize for getting in your way.” 

“Huh?” Hajime scanned his face for a hint of sarcasm but couldn’t find any. “I- You didn’t get in my way, but like seriously, are you okay? What happened?”

“I fell.”

“And then just laid there?” 

“I must have.” He shrugged. “I hit my head.” Nagito seemed out of breath, but then again, he always seemed to talk like that. He lifted a hand to the back of his head, and it came back with blood.  _ Shit, how didn’t I notice that before? _ “Ah, I should maybe see my doctor-”

“I’ll call 911-” Hajime reached for the phone he’d tossed aside when he jumped in to get Nagito. Nagito stopped him with a gentle hand. 

“It’s not necessary. I don’t feel dizzy anymore and it’s barely bleeding. I suppose a doctor lives next door, but-”

“Hang tight, I’m gonna get him.” Hajime forced the white haired man into a deck chair and made a motion for him to stay there. He ran out of the yard and up to Nagito’s neighbor’s house. Where Nagito’s house was white and little changes had been made to the victorian architecture, his neighbor’s house was black and a sleek, modern interior could be seen through the windows. Hajime knocked quickly and only had to wait a few seconds before someone opened the door. “Are you a doctor?” Hajime looked down at the man in front of him. 

“I’m a psychiatrist.” He was short, with purple hair and purple eyes and a crooked smile that seemed like he was holding in a laugh. 

“Oh.” Hajime frowned. “Do you know where the doctor in this neighborhood lives?”

“Psychiatrists are doctors. I went to medical school.” He seemed offended. Hajime sighed in relief. 

“Your neighbor hit his head, can you take a look at him? He’s bleeding, but I don’t think it’s serious, I just-”

“If it’s not serious, why does he need a doctor?” The man crossed his arms. Hajime was liking him less by the second. “Whatever, lead the way.” He shrugged and followed Hajime down towards Nagito’s house. “Oh? Nagito got hurt?”

“You know him?”

“It’s not like he’s my neighbor or anything.” The man cracked a mean-spirited grin. Hajime sighed.  _ Very funny.  _ “You must be his new pool boy? Rantaro was telling me he quit.” The man gestured to Hajime’s lime green work shirt. Hajime nodded, opening the gate to Nagito’s backyard and hoping the man would start walking as fast as he talked. 

“What’s your name?” Hajime asked as they approached Nagito’s chair. 

“Kokichi Ouma.” Kokichi introduced himself, reminding Hajime of his earlier conversation with Kaito.  _ This is the guy that apparently gave Kaito so much hell in high school?  _

“ _ You’re _ Kokichi?”

“Dr. Ouma.” Kokichi corrected with a frown. “Ten years of school and no one can even-”

“Kokichi!” Nagito’s eyes went wide with recognition. “You really didn’t have to come all this way, it’s just a little blood.” Nagito sounded worried about the whole ordeal.  _ ‘All this way?’ He only had to cross a yard.  _ Hajime wasn’t sure why he was in a bad mood, but he suspected it had something to do with Kokichi. 

“It’s no problem. They’re doing construction on my house, so it’s nice to get out, anyway.” Kokichi took a step towards Nagito and examined the gash on the back of his head. Hajime glanced over to Kokichi’s house, where he was about 99% sure they  _ weren’t _ doing construction. He watched Kokichi turn on his phone flashlight and hold it in front of Nagito’s face, studying his eyes. He turned off the flashlight and straightened up. “It doesn’t look like a concussion. You’ll be fine with some rest and a bandaid. Hajime, come with me to get a bandaid.”

Hajime reluctantly followed Kokichi into the house and watched him dig through the cabinets. “How do you know where his stuff is?”

“I’m his doctor.”

“You come to his house?”

“No, never.” Kokichi didn’t even glance in Hajime’s direction as he spoke. “You acted like you knew me earlier. Who are you?”

“Er, Hajime Hinata. I think you knew my boss in high school.” Hajime pulled on his shirt, wondering if it was a good idea to bring him up. “Kaito Momota?”

“Never heard of him, sorry.” Kokichi’s deep frown said otherwise. “You’re Nagito’s new pool boy, then?”

“Uh, yeah. I’ve only been on the job a few weeks.”

“Rantaro mentioned he was quitting. Are you fucking Nagito, too?” Kokichi finally pulled out a spray disinfectant, but Hajime was coughing too hard to notice. 

“ _ Excuse me? _ ” He shook his head, wondering if he’d misheard Kokichi.  _ Rantaro? Nagito? There’s no way- _

“So you aren’t?” Kokichi looked bored. “Sorry, I figured you would’ve known. Rantaro said you two were friends.” Kokichi smiled. “Don’t be upset about it.”

“Why would I be upset?” Hajime took a step away from Kokichi, who shrugged innocently. “If you’re trying to imply something, I-” Hajime cut himself off. He didn’t know what to say and he felt like acknowledging Kokichi’s words just made them stronger, so he rolled his eyes and shut his mouth.  _ I am going to fucking call Rantaro as soon as I get home. How could he not tell me about that? Seriously? _

The two walked back out to the yard and Hajime waited while Kokichi cleaned the pool gravel out of the cut and disinfected it before putting on a bandaid under Nagito’s wild hair. Kokichi said a quick goodbye and left, leaving Hajime with a devious expression he didn’t like. Nagito was staring down at his feet, eyes nervous and hands clasped tightly together. “What’s wrong?” Hajime raised an eyebrow.

“I… I didn’t mean to cause such a hassle for you and Kokichi. I’m sure you had better things to do today.”

“No, not really. Honestly, all I do is clean your pool. And sometimes hang out with my friends.” Hajime waved his hands in front of him, hoping he could get it across to Nagito that it really wasn’t a big deal at all. “Is it alright if I stay with you for a bit? Y’know, to make sure you don’t fall again?” Hajime wasn’t sure why he felt so awkward asking, especially since he was sure that Nagito would say no, would say it was ‘too big of a hassle’ or-

“You’d do that?” Nagito’s eyes sparkled. 

“Er, sure.”

“Thank you, Hajime.” Nagito had a lopsided, wobbly smile that was pretty cute.  _ Wait? What am I thinking? _ Hajime tried to clear his head, but what Kokichi said kept coming back to him.  _ Nagito was seriously sleeping with Rantaro? As in Rantaro who I hang out with all the time?  _ He took a seat opposite Nagito, wringing out the bottom of his shirt. With all the excitement, he hadn’t even noticed how wet it had gotten from jumping in the pool. Now that he was sitting in the chair, his wet clothes felt like weights on him, but they were cool nonetheless, serving as a barrier against the hot sun overhead. “Ah, your clothes-” Nagito pointed out.

“Do you not want wet clothes on the chairs?” Hajime asked, pulling off his t-shirt and throwing it off to the side, near his pool equipment. Nagito instantly flushed, light eyes wide. He stayed silent for a moment before blinking himself back to clarity. 

“N-no. You’re fine, Hajime. They’re waterproof, but thank you for the thought.” Nagito’s words sounded oddly hollow. Hajime sat back in his chair. 

“Cool.” He wasn’t sure what about him taking off his shirt had startled Nagito so much.  _ We’re both dudes, what’s the problem? _ He rested his chin on his hand and leaned to the side of the chair, staring at the clear water of the pool. “So… do you like swimming?”  _ What a dumb fucking question. Why did I ask that? Of course he likes swimming, he has a fucking pool.  _ Hajime’s inner voice reminded him in a far from polite tone. Nagito flushed even darker, his face almost red.

“I don’t know how.”

“ _ What? _ ” Hajime couldn’t hide the surprise in his voice. “How… How can you not know how to swim? When we live on the ocean? And you have a pool?” He was sitting up straight again, eyebrows raised in shock. 

“Ah… hah…” Nagito looked worried. “I’m not very athletic… and I don’t go outdoors very much. I was sick often growing up so my mother wouldn’t let me play in it. When my parents passed away, I never had a need to go into the deep end of the pool. The most I ever do is wade in the shallow section.” 

“Seriously?” Hajime couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “If I had a pool like this, you wouldn’t be able to get me out of it. Like, ever.” 

“You like to swim?”

“Yeah, I love it. I was on the swim team in high school, and I used to be on my college team.” Hajime nodded quickly. It wasn’t until after he spoke that he realized he’d even brought up college. 

“‘Used to be?’” Nagito tilted his head.

“I, er, dropped out.” Hajime opted for the short version of the story, eyes searching for anything in the yard that would seem natural to look at that wasn’t Nagito. Nagito’s mouth formed a small ‘o’ and he looked away, too. 

“Would you teach me?” Nagito asked, his voice surprisingly earnest. “I can pay for lessons and they don’t have to be often. I’ve been looking for a swim teacher, but I’ve been embarrassed about it, since I’m so old and you seem like you wouldn’t laugh at me, even when I’ll be a terrible swimmer and-”

“Dude, I wouldn’t laugh at you. That’d be terrible, jeez.” Hajime coughed and took in a deep breath. Nagito was watching him with an expectant gaze. “But, sure. I’ve never given lessons, so I might be a shit teacher.” He said apologetically, but Nagito shook off the response. 

“I’m sure you’ll be terrific, Hajime. It would really do me wonders. You’ll have to be patient with me, though. I’m a very slow learner and I’m not very good at most things.” Nagito was rubbing his arm, making the skin turn red. “Rantaro told me he was offering tennis lessons, but I’ve been too scared to ask him, since I don’t want to waste his time…” Nagito laughed lightly, but Hajime wasn’t sure where the joke was.

“I mean, Rantaro’s pretty chill about things, I doubt he’d be rude. Even if you’re not athletic, or whatever. My friend Chiaki never leaves her room and he still gives her surfing lessons.”

“Do you surf?” Nagito raised an eyebrow, something glinting in his eyes. 

“Yeah! It’s pretty fun.” Hajime nodded. “Why?”

“I was just wondering.” Nagito looked away. “Thank you for spending time with me today, Hajime. I’m feeling much better, so I think I’ll go inside now, but… could I schedule a swimming lesson whenever would work best for you? I don’t do anything during the day, so I can make anytime work.” 

“Um… how about the evening? Like seven?” Hajime offered. “I usually get off work around three, but I help my flatmates out around the house until seven most days.” 

“Seven would be lovely!” Nagito clapped his hands together. He smiled happily. “I’ll see you tomorrow at seven, then!” 

Hajime finished up the pool and yard and got back into his truck. When he got back to the apartment, he didn’t even wait to get into his room before calling Rantaro. “Uh, hey, Hajime. What’s up?” 

“You were  _ sleeping _ with Nagito? And you didn’t even  _ think _ to tell me about it before I took your job?”

“Hajime.” Rantaro laughed quietly on the other end. “I sleep with, like, all my clients.”

“ _ What?!” _

“Every bored housewife and closeted socialite in Hope’s Peak’s been having me ‘clean their pool’ or give them ‘tennis lessons’ for years, dude. I never mentioned Nagito ‘cause I thought you knew, already. I figured Chiaki would’ve said something or Souda would’ve made a joke by now.” Rantaro’s voice was genuine enough that Hajime believed him. He sighed, putting a hand to his head and retreating to his room. “If it makes you feel better, Nagito’s the one who offered, and I knew he never offered it to Kaito or Souda, so I knew he wouldn’t be expecting anything from you, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“Well, yeah, of course that’s what I’m worried about.” Hajime laid down in his bed, staring up at the ceiling above him. He had a few random postcards and tickets taped to it from various vacations and outings he’d done with friends. “He asked for swimming lessons tomorrow and I don’t want him to have a weird idea of what a swimming lesson is, if your tennis lessons are… you know…”

Rantaro laughed for a few seconds. “You’re always so uptight, Hajime. He’s not gonna expect anything ‘weird,’ I’d bet my life on it. But you’re seriously giving him swimming lessons?”

“Yeah, why?”

“It’s cute.” Rantaro’s smile was audible. “Nagito’s really lonely. I think he honestly just asked ‘cause he wanted to hang out with someone. Spending some time with you’ll be good for him, probably. And besides, even if he does ask to suck your dick, that’s not a huge deal. If you tell him no, he’ll never bring it up again and you’re making a lonely dude’s night by hanging out with him, and if you say yes, you’re getting cash and a blowjob. Win-win situation.”

“Wait.” Hajime blinked, brow furrowing. “So when you said you guys slept together, you meant…”

“He sucked my dick, that’s all.” Rantaro said casually. 

“So… he ask  _ you _ -”

“If he could suck my dick. Never asked for anything more. Actually, will you tell him ‘hi’ from me when you see him? I haven’t been over since I quit cleaning pools.” 

“Um. Sure.” Hajime wasn’t sure why he felt so weird about the whole thing. He knew Rantaro had sex, God knew how often he heard about it at parties, and he knew Nagito probably did, too, so he wasn’t sure why the idea of them having sex together was stirring up emotions in him.  _ Maybe it’s ‘cause you want to? _ A malicious voice in the back of his mind teased. “I’ll see you around, Rantaro.”

“See ya’, Hajime.”

* * *

The next evening, after dinner, Hajime changed into his swim trunks and threw on a random shirt and sweatshirt. Ibuki spotted him leaving, from where she was fiddling around with settings on one of her amps in the living room. “No fair! You’re going swimming without us?”

“Not swimming, really, just… er, well, I’m giving swimming lessons.”

“At night?”

“Well it’s just one guy so-”

“Oh my god, you’re  _ so _ about to go have pool sex.”

“ _ Ibuki no _ !” Hajime groaned. “He’s a friend of Rantaro’s, I just offered ‘cause he doesn’t know how to swim. It’s not anything weird. Seriously.”

“Chlorine’s like  _ super _ bad for your dick. Oh! That would be such a good song title!” She turned around to hastily scrawl something in her songwriting journal. Chiaki emerged from her and Ibuki’s room at the noise. 

“You’re giving swim lessons?” She raised an eyebrow. 

“Yeah. He’s a guy I work for, Rantaro said he’s lonely and he said he can’t swim, so I thought it’d be good. He’s also paying.” Hajime shrugged. He saw Ibuki open her mouth and he cut her off. “ _ It’s not _ anything weird.”

“Alright.” Chiaki frowned in confusion. “Well, have fun. It’s good to see you excited about swimming again.” Since he’d dropped out of college, swimming had been a bit of a scourge in Hajime’s life. It brought back too many memories and too much guilt for him to enjoy it the way he used to. 

The drive to Nagito’s house was considerably shorter when he didn’t have to spend any of it loading supplies or stopping at Kaito’s to swap out his car. His house felt much different at night, even though various garden lights still kept it almost as light as it was in the mornings when Hajime visited. He started to walk up to the porch, but he heard a sound around back, so he unlocked the gate and walked towards the pool, instead. The sound of the pool’s water mixed with the gentle chirping of the crickets in the air, making Hajime feel more at ease. Nagito was sitting with his back to Hajime, feet dipped in the pool as he stared out past his yard to the water behind it.  _ I don’t even wanna know how much a house this close to the ocean costs.  _

“Hey.” Hajime called out so he wouldn’t startle Nagito. He jumped, anyway. 

“A-ah, hello Hajime.” Nagito stood up to greet him. “Was the drive alright?”

“Yeah, it was fine. I only live like a half hour away and I’m used to coming this way for work.”

“Do you live in a house or an apartment, Hajime?” Nagito unbuttoned his shirt as he spoke, until it hung loosely on his shoulders.

“An apartment with some friends, why?” Hajime suddenly felt defensive. Rantaro was used to being around people as rich as Nagito, but Hajime wasn’t. Everything felt like some sort of hidden competition with Nagito, like he couldn’t admit anything the white haired man might judge, even though he was fairly sure he wouldn’t. 

“I meant nothing by it.” Nagito must have read some semblance of what Hajime was thinking on his face. “It’s just that you seem to really love swimming, so I was going to ask if your apartment complex had a pool.”

“A pool?” Hajime almost laughed. “No way. It’s mostly students. My flatmates are in college and they had an extra room, so I moved in with them. It’s just a bunch of apartments and a door, there’s not like… a pool or a tennis court or anything.” Hajime walked up to Nagito. “When I wanna swim, I hang out with Rantaro.”

“Rantaro Amami?” Nagito tilted his head. Something about Nagito being so eager to recognize his name stirred something negative in Hajime, but he wasn’t sure why.  _ I’m being stupid, of course Nagito recognized Rantaro’s name, he worked here. I really wish Kokichi hadn’t told me they were sleeping together, it makes things weird.  _

“Yeah, he inherited an oceanside property that got passed down his family. Me and my friends swim over at his place. I’m over there a lot.” Hajime hesitated before he continued, wondering how much he wanted to share. “I used to have access to my college’s pool, but… I’m not there anymore. My gym doesn’t have one, either. So it’s just kinda Rantaro’s place.”

“My pool is always open to you.” Nagito’s face was blank. Hajime narrowed his eyes, scanning for malice in it.  _ He can’t mean that. I barely know him.  _

“I’d… I’d be uncomfortable with that.”

“I’m sorry.”

“... Let’s get started with swimming lessons.” Hajime changed the subject and pulled off his shirt. He squinted at Nagito, who had frozen by where he was folding his shirt over one of the pool chairs. “Is there something on me?” He asked, but Nagito shook his head. “You’re staring.”

“Oh.” Nagito made a show of looking away.  _ Do I have a zit or something what’s his deal? _ Hajime set his shirt down next to Nagito’s and stepped into the pool, the feeling of the water relaxing him. 

“Shit, your pool’s really warm.”

“I get cold easily.” Nagito was standing at the top step, only his ankles were submerged. After a pause, he stepped in farther, the water hitting his knees. He stopped. 

“What’s wrong?” Hajime was slightly impatient. 

“I’m terrible at everything.” Nagito was picking at the skin on his arm nervously. “What if I drown and that causes problems for you?” 

“Nagito.” Hajime walked through the water up to the stairs and held his hand out. “I’m a certified lifeguard, you won’t drown. And you should probably be more worried about the problems drowning would cause  _ you _ , not me.” 

“Okay.” Nagito looked reassured and took Hajime’s hand, finally getting all the way into the water. “What do I do now?” He looked down at himself in the water. 

“Good question. I haven’t really done this before, so bear with me.” Hajime frowned. “Okay, let’s start with breaststroke. Your arms and legs are gonna do the same thing and your head will stay out of the water, so it shouldn’t be too stressful.” Hajime ducked underwater to get himself adjusted to the temperature and came back up. “Here, I’ll show you. I’ll go to the end of the pool and back.” Hajime had been doing a more advanced breaststroke for many years, so he had to remind himself of the version he wanted to show Nagito. He swam to the other side of the pool and back in just a few seconds, stopping when he reached Nagito, again. “If you’re not good with the cold, make sure you get adjusted to the water, first.” 

“How?”

“Just, y’know… like, duck under.” Hajime showed him. Nagito copied him, pushing his hair out of his face as he came up. Without his hair’s normal volume, Nagito looked much smaller. “You’re only an inch taller than me?” Hajime was surprised. He’d assumed Nagito was taller between his hair and his build. 

“Does it matter?” Nagito raised an eyebrow. 

“Um. No. Sorry.” Hajime shook his head. “Here, I’ll show you what to do.” 

Despite his initial apprehension, Nagito was a surprisingly quick learner, even if he panicked over every new thing Hajime tried to teach him, which after a whole hour was still only the breaststroke and backstroke.  _ Hey, at least he can technically swim now.  _ Nagito was out of breath and his cheeks were flushed when he popped up from the water. “We can be done for tonight if you want, an hour’s more than enough for a first lesson.” Hajime watched Nagito push his hair out of his face again and nod silently. “And hey, great job. You can swim now.” 

“Thank you, Hajime.” Nagito smiled happily.

“No problem. If you wanna know more strokes and like, how to tread water, I’ll teach you another time. I don’t think you’ll need to know anything beyond that, unless you plan on pursuing a new career in swimming.”

“Not any time soon, but thank you.” Nagito’s smile was still present and something about it made Hajime smile, too. He told himself it was just being in a pool again. The ocean was nice in its own way, but he didn't get the chance to have the stillness and independence of a real pool very often. “Would you like cash or would you like me to just wait and add more to your next pool bill?” Nagito remembered. 

“Cash is fine.” Hajime shrugged. “If you have it on you, if not, I’ll just wait. It’s no big deal.” He almost told Nagito not to worry about it. Almost. “Rantaro says hi, by the way.”

“You said you visit him a lot, are you two close?” Nagito looked straight into Hajime’s eyes. 

“Yeah, really close. One of my flatmates -Ibuki- met him at some punk concerts the summer before she started school down here and then she introduced him to her girlfriend -my best friend- and he’s been friends with all of us ever since.” Hajime could still remember Ibuki insisting they meet her at McDonalds to meet Rantaro four years ago. Like most of his memories with them, it was a fond one. 

“He’s very kind.” Nagito nodded. “He used to come and check on me, after he found out I lived alone.”

“‘Check on you?’” Hajime questioned.

“As you saw yesterday, I injure myself quite often. It’s an unpleasant habit for those around me, but not one I ever feel the need to do much about.” Nagito was still smoothing his wet hair back, even though none of it was on his face. Hajime was pretty sure it was some sort of nervous habit. “I haven’t talked with him since he quit. Not out of ill will or anything like that, just… I feel bad burdening him with myself.”

“I don’t think it’s a ‘burden,’ I mean, he asked me to tell you hello. He’s only said nice things about you.”  _ Unlike everyone else for some reason _ , Hajime decided not to add. 

“That’s sweet of him.” Nagito had a neutral face that Hajime couldn’t read. “It’s nice.” Nagito stared back out at the ocean behind them. “Getting the chance to talk to you, I mean.” 

“You, too.” Hajime nodded at him. 

“I think we have more in common than I’d even hoped for.” Nagito said quietly.  _ Huh.  _ Hajime blinked.  _ What the hell does that phrasing mean? _

“Uh… What do you mean?” Hajime frowned. _Do we really have anything in common?_ _We both know the backstroke?_

“You feel guilty about something.” Nagito’s eyes were back looking into his soul and Hajime wished he could make them stop staring. Hajime tensed up, his frown deepening. 

“I don’t want to talk about that, Nagito.” He said firmly. Unfortunately, something in his voice just seemed to spur Nagito on. Nagito’s eyes went wide and he took a step closer to Hajime. 

“That’s fine, Hajime. I didn’t mean to pry.” The look on his face told Hajime he had very much meant to pry. “I really am sorry.” He said after a pause of tense silence. Nagito looked away. “I’ll do anything to get people to stick around. I’d hoped us having something in common would inspire you to. I just get so lonely in this house. I am callous and difficult to be around, so I don’t have many friends. Since Rantaro quit, I’ve been completely alone every day.” Nagito had a shadow over his face. Hajime put a hand to his head.  _ Fuck. He’s weird but… I do feel pretty bad for this guy. Living alone in a house this huge with no friends or family would suck ass. I can’t blame him for being kinda off.  _

“It’s fine, dude. Don’t worry about it.” 

“Do I make you uncomfortable?” Nagito asked, eyes still boring into Hajime. Hajime thought for a moment before he responded.

“No. You’re weird, but that’s fine. Everyone’s a little weird.” Hajime stretched, using it for a break from Nagito’s never wavering stare. When he looked back at the taller man, his cheeks were rosy, a new smile forming on his face.

“Thank you, Hajime.” He was slightly breathless.  _ Bro chill, it wasn’t that big of a compliment.  _ “If there’s ever anything I can do for you Hajime… please let me know.” Nagito’s eyes were genuine, but Hajime didn’t know what that extended to. If he was still talking about his pool, or whatever he’d offered Rantaro, or something completely different entirely. Hajime wasn’t sure what he’d do if Nagito explicitly offered him sex like he had with Rantaro. The rational part of his brain said  _ say no way duh _ , but he was having a tough time listening to it.  _ Would it be that horrible? I mean… a single blowjob wouldn’t hurt anyone. He’s lonely, I’m single. Wait what the fuck am I thinking? _ Hajime shook the thought from his head. Nagito seemed to notice, one side of his lips quirking up into what was almost a smile. “Did Rantaro tell you?” He asked and the water seemed to stand still for him to do it. 

“I-... Yeah. Sorry if I was acting weird about it.” Hajime sighed in defeat, shoulders falling back from letting go from a tension he hadn’t realized he was carrying. Nagito seemed unaffected by the thought, his gaze resting on some of the flowers near the side of the pool. 

“I would never offer if it would upset you. I don’t wish to upset you.” Nagito was picking at his arm again, the pale skin turning red everywhere he scratched. “But if it wouldn’t, then I mean what I said. I’d do anything for you, Hajime.”

“You barely know me.” Hajime laughed. 

“It’s more than I know most people.” Nagito offered quietly. There was a moment of awkward silence where Hajime struggled not to avert his eyes from Nagito. The white haired man’s eyes on him reminded him of another time in his life, the way they glinted with a strange admiration. At least back then Hajime felt like he’d done something worth being admired for. But he couldn’t say it didn’t feel good to have someone look at him like he was worth something again. There had been a time when Hajime was a big fish in a little pond and it had been something he was embarrassed to admit was almost necessary for his ego to survive. He gritted his teeth. 

“Is that the only reason, then? That I’m the only person you know?” Hajime hadn’t meant for his words to sound so harsh, but Nagito didn’t bat an eye at his tone or the subtle insult. 

“Not at all.” He shook his head, eyes gleaming. “You’re special Hajime… I can feel it. There are other people I can talk to, like Kokichi or Rantaro, but… they are just people at the end of the day. They aren’t like you.”

“I’m more than a person?” Hajime laughed.

“Yes.” Nagito’s face was serious. He took a step closer; their noses were almost touching. “Hasn’t anyone told you that?” 

“So no strings attached? Just head?” Hajime sometimes wished he didn’t have the delivery and polite timing of a brick. Nagito laughed lightly, despite his best efforts not to.

“So Rantaro went into the details with you?” Nagito almost seemed like he was teasing him, making Hajime’s face flush a dark pink. “I don’t expect a relationship from anyone, Hajime. That’s not my role. I would just like to make life easier for you, if you’ll let me.” Nagito’s hair was starting to dry, the humidity outside making it even puffier than normal. “Ah… do you notice anything about how the flowers smell over here?” Nagito asked suddenly. 

“Uh…” Hajime tried to sniff without looking too stupid and focused on the way the yard smelled. It always smelled good, because of the plethora of flowers everywhere, but surprisingly, Hajime did notice something different on this side of the pool. “One flower smells different. I dunno which one, but it’s… it’s more like a spice, less like a flower.” Hajime tried to find the culprit, but couldn’t. Nagito smiled excitedly and clapped his hands together. 

“Yes! Exactly!” He walked to the edge of the pool and reached out of it to pull one of the flowers from its stem. “It’s my carnations. They have a stronger scent than most flowers and a less floral one… They’re popular flowers. Some even see them as the flower of the gods.” Nagito handed Hajime the carnation and he took it, twirling the stem between his fingers to see the sides of it. “They represent a divine love. Complete fascination…” Nagito’s eyes were glazed over. “But you see how the flowers may all look similar, when you pay attention, one of them stands out, even if you don’t know why? That is how you are, Hajime. I wish I had better words to explain it.”

* * *

Hajime had left shortly after that, carnation and cash in hand. Nagito had seemed sad to see him go, but thoughts were buzzing too quickly through Hajime’s brain and he needed to get home. Chiaki was waiting for him in the living room, laptop open simultaneously to tetris and a class lecture video. “How was it?” She asked, as soon as his shoes were off. 

“Good. I think. I dunno, he’s weird.” Hajime shrugged. “Goodnight, Chiaki.”

“‘Night, Hajime.” She called back as he entered his room. He could hear Ibuki snoring in the next room over. Hajime laid on his bed and sighed. He closed his eyes and tried to concentrate, though he wasn’t sure on what.  _ Oh shit! The flower! _ Hajime sat back up and grabbed one of the empty cups in his room and filled it with water to put the carnation in. _ There.  _ His mind ran through the night’s events, trying to make sense of what Nagito had said. No matter how many times he went through it, he still wasn’t sure he understand Nagito at all. He groaned and sat up.

“Chiaki?” He called cautiously out his door. 

“‘Sup?” Chiaki was still up.

“Can I get your advice on something?” Hajime peeked his head around the door. Chiaki was still sitting in the same spot on their couch. She closed it and walked into his room. 

“If it’s what to wear tomorrow, my vote’s on ditching the button down for once.” She leaned against his wall, playing with one of the random knick knacks on his shelf. Hajime hesitated, but she didn’t interrupt him, so he finally took a deep breath.

“Um… There’s a guy.”

“ _ What? _ ” Chiaki’s face lit up. “Ibuki  _ soo _ called it. I have to tell her-”

“No!” Hajime pinched the bridge of his nose. “At least, not yet. I mean, I… I should say  _ maybe _ there’s a guy. Not like a relationship-guy, like a probably super casual hook-up that goes wrong guy.”

“That’s not a good start.” She raised an eyebrow, moving to the foot of his bed. “Is he who gave you the carnation?”

“You’re… perceptive.”

“I’m a comp sci major.” Chiaki snorted. “I miss one colon and I’m up all night figuring it out. I can notice a giant red flower in your room.”

“Yeah. You’re right.” Hajime nodded. He took one last look at the carnation on his desk and told Chiaki the whole story, from Kaito’s weird job offer to a very vague version of what Rantaro told him to Nagito’s rambling at his swim lesson. “He said ‘divine love’ and ‘complete fascination,’ I mean, what does that even mean? Is it fascination as in infatuation with me? Like romantically? Or is he still talking about how he thinks I’m special or whatever and it’s completely just a platonic adoration? Is he even telling the truth? Chiaki help me.” Hajime threw himself back on his bed, no energy left in him. Chiaki didn’t respond, so he sat back up, slightly offended. “What?”

“I haven’t seen you this excited since college.” She shrugged, eyes staying level with him. “You used to get just like this about all those dumb books back then.”

“They weren’t ‘dumb books,’ they were literary classics.” Hajime narrowed his eyes. 

“They were visual novels with no sex, no pictures, and a lot more big words.” Chiaki scoffed. “If you want a real story then you should play-”

“ _ Chiaki. _ ” Hajime groaned. 

“Sorry, sorry. I just meant, like…  _ God _ , you always used to get like this. You would get so excited trying to figure out some random old author’s intentions about something and I haven’t seen you like this since…” 

“I… Yeah… I guess you’re right.” Hajime knew Chiaki was right; he could feel it. He really hadn’t been this interested in figuring anything out since college had ended for him and now here he was trying to ethos pathos logos a response to Nagito just because he intrigued him. “Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea to hang out with Nagito.” He said after a pause. “Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea at all.” 

**Author's Note:**

> HUGE shoutout to Zeke and Nicole for being my lifeblood and helping me get this done. This was a fun chapter to write and I really hope everyone enjoys <3


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